Warriors just fine as they are, without Kevin Durant

Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant (35) watches as a teammate shoots free throws during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Oklahoma City, Monday, Feb. 1, 2016. Oklahoma City won 114 -98. (AP Photo/Alonzo Adams)

Photo: Alonzo Adams, Associated Press

For several years now, the NBA has conducted its business in a parallel universe. There’s the theater of the present, which pretty much explains itself, and there’s the mythical land of maybe. The Warriors managed to avoid such nonsense in their championship season, but the past two days have found them fully immersed.

You remember how this works. Players, executives, fans and media had to endure months of tedious speculation about LeBron James before he finally made “the decision.” Potential free agents virtually hold teams hostage in the world of make-believe. Incompetent also-rans weigh the merits of tanking versus dignity in anticipation of the No. 1 overall draft pick. And now there is Kevin Durant, rumored to be highly interested in the Warriors when he becomes a free agent this summer.

As you watched Wednesday night’s 134-121 victory in Washington, it had to enter your mind at times: What could Durant do for this team? He’d be welcome; that goes without saying. Joe Lacob and Peter Guber, those big-thinking owners who won’t rest until a shovel breaks ground in San Francisco, see this as the ultimate power move.

But does it really make sense?

Here’s a promise: This column won’t be dwelling on the issue, not until July, when loose talk becomes reality. But Durant-with-the-Warriors demands an opinion, right down to the blue-collar guys throwing down beers at the corner bar. Out with it now, everyone, and then let the Warriors operate in peace through the playoffs.

I just can’t see it. Not if they win another title. We’re looking at basketball virtuosity here, in the record (45-4) and in the connoisseur’s discerning vision. The ESPN broadcast crew was positively enchanted Wednesday night, particularly during Stephen Curry’s early 12-for-13-shooting outburst that led to a 51-point night.

“He’s been beyond a player in this game,” marveled Jay Bilas. “He’s been an artist.”

“This is joyous basketball,” Doug Collins said. “You get mesmerized by Curry. You forget that anyone else is even playing.”

“Capologists,” those vitally important folks who sort out the NBA’s convoluted salary-cap restrictions, figure the Warriors would have to part with Harrison Barnes, Andre Iguodala and Andrew Bogut, through various means, to take on Durant’s contract. That removes a vital component, the wise and influential MVP of last year’s Finals, and that rare center who protects the rim and illuminates the offense with his passing, screening and rebounding.

Granted, put them together and they still don’t add up to Durant, probably the second-best shooter in the league (behind Curry) and an unstoppable force at 6-foot-9. It just seems wrong, that’s all. It seems excessive. There’s a distinct rhythm to great basketball teams, and it is something to be cherished and preserved.

What the Warriors have to wonder, from the front office to the locker room, is whether it’s worth challenging a time-honored NBA truism: Don’t mess with greatness. In winning 11 championships in 13 years, the Boston Celtics rarely made a minor trade, let alone dismantle the core. The powerhouse teams led by Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and Michael Jordan didn’t feel the need to acquire an additional superstar. The Spurs broke tradition with the acquisition of LaMarcus Aldridge, but their mainstays are eternal and a championship is hardly guaranteed.

Steve Kerr has made the statement many times, to his team and the fans: Appreciate what’s happening now, because it can’t last, not against inevitable change and the passage of time. If you’re in a special groove, the type of thing we’re experiencing now, give it the proper respect.

Some closing thoughts on Durant:

•If the player in question were a youthful center along the lines of Bill Walton — brilliant passer, pure winner, completely selfless and capable of a 20-point scoring night around the rim — the temptation would be greater. How much more outside shooting do the Warriors need?

•Maybe Durant wouldn’t have to accept a “subservient” role, as Rick Barry suggested on KNBR, but he wouldn’t be The Man in Oakland. Does that fit into his strategy?

•Through it all, most insiders see him signing a one-year deal to remain in Oklahoma City, thus to join the 2016-17 free-agent class and cash in (along with teammate Russell Westbrook) on the league’s dramatic salary-cap escalation. So perhaps we should all relax.

Kerr certainly is. A friend from his broadcasting days, Mike Breen, took it upon himself to conduct ESPN’s on-court interview between quarters. “Do they have you do everything here?” Kerr joked. “I’d like some popcorn.”

Bruce Jenkins has written for the San Francisco Chronicle since 1973 and has been a sports columnist since 1989. He has covered 27 World Series, 19 Wimbledons and many other major events, including the Super Bowl, World Cup soccer, NBA Finals, four major golf tournaments and U.S. Open tennis championships.

He graduated from Santa Monica High School in 1966 and UC Berkeley with a B.A. in journalistic studies in 1971.